When PASS Sports' respective National Hockey League and Major League Baseball broadcast rights to the Detroit Red Wings and Detroit Tigers franchises came up for renewal, Fox Sports Net made a bid for the contracts and won them both. Fox Sports decided to push the launch date of the new channel forward in time for the beginning of the 1997–98 NHL season and 1998 MLB season; Fox Sports Detroit began broadcasting on September 17, 1997. Post-Newsweek, meanwhile, concluded that its coverage area was not large enough to support two RSNs and sold the remainder of its Tigers and Pistons contracts, and the contract of sportscaster John Keating, to Fox Sports Detroit. Post-Newsweek shut down PASS Sports on October 31, 1997, leaving Fox Sports Detroit as the sole regional sports network in Michigan.[4]

Studios

From its launch until January 16, 2008, Fox Sports Detroit broadcast its studio shows out of FSN Northwest's facilities in Bellevue, Washington.[5] On October 1, 2009, the network unveiled a new all-digital high definition-capable studio in its Southfield headquarters dubbed the "Call Sam Studio", named after its sponsor, the Sam Bernstein Law Firm. It serves as the production base of the pre-game/post-game shows Tigers Live, Pistons Live and Red Wings Live, as well the magazine shows of all three teams and all of the channel's other local programming. It was expected that 80% of the shows produced from the studio would be produced and broadcast in HD. The first program to originate from the new studio was Wingspan, a special previewing the 2009-10 Red Wings season, on October 1.[2]

Tigers, Pistons and Red Wings switch to cable full-time

The channel shared professional team coverage rights with some Detroit area broadcast television stations until the spring of 2008. In March 2008, the channel signed new long-term contracts with the Pistons, Red Wings and Tigers to broadcast more games than in previous years, becoming the exclusive local home of all three teams for the first time until at least 2018.[1] This leaves only the NFL's Detroit Lions as the only local professional sports team in Detroit to have all of its games on broadcast television.

Detroit Lions

On May 21, 2015, the Detroit Lions announced a multi-year broadcast partnership with Fox Sports Detroit and WJBK (Fox 2). Fox Sports Detroit produces the preseason game broadcasts with Fox 2 producing the pre-game and post-game segments. The games air live on Fox 2 and the rest of the Detroit Lions Television Network, with re-airings on Fox Sports Detroit. [6] Fox Sports Detroit also airs Lions Live after regular season games, and Monday head coach press conferences.

Programming

Local team coverage

Professional teams

Detroit Red Wings – Fox Sports Detroit holds the exclusive local television rights to 70 Detroit Red Wings regular season games, as well as some preseason games and the first round of the playoffs.[1]Red Wings Live airs before and after all games.

Detroit Tigers – Fox Sports Detroit holds the exclusive local television rights to at least 150 Detroit Tigers regular season games, as well as some Spring Training games.[1]Tigers Live (which was extended to an hour-long program in 2013) airs before and after all regular season games, and after all playoff games.

Detroit Pistons – Fox Sports Detroit holds the exclusive local television rights to up to 70 regular season Detroit Pistons games, as well as some early round playoff games.[1]Pistons Live airs before and after all games.

Detroit Lions – Fox Sports Detroit airs repeats of Detroit Lions preseason games. It also airs Lions Live after regular season games, and the Monday press conference with the Lions' head coach.[6]

Michigan Golf Live – A pre-recorded weekly show that promotes golfing and golf courses in Michigan, hosted by Doug Karsch.

MHSAA Football Friday Overtime – Debuted in August 2011, the program includes highlights, analysis and interviews from high school football games around the state. Hosted by Mickey York and Rob Rubick, it airs live Friday nights at 12:00 a.m. during the fall.[10]

Former programs

The Detroit Sports Report (or simply DSR) – A Detroit/Michigan-centered sports news show created in September 2000 by Fox Sports Net to help increase ratings for the National Sports Report. Marc Soicher and Angie Arlotti (now Mentink) were the original anchors of the 10:00 p.m. show, while Soicher hosted a 7:00 p.m. edition of the program solo. Mickey York and Brad Adam hosted the weekend editions of the program. In 2003, Mickey York promoted to weeknight co-anchor replacing Soicher, following his departure for FSN Rocky Mountain, with Ryan Field (previously with WJBK and sports radio station WDFN) replacing York as weekend anchor in addition to serving as a correspondent. Ratings for the Detroit Sports Report remained decent, despite declining ratings for the National Sports Report, which itself was canceled in 2004; FSN dropped many of the regional sports news programs later that year or in 2005, with the Detroit Sports Report being the last to be canceled in April 2007.

Pistons Insider – A 30-minute pre-recorded in-season pregame show in which Matt Shepard and Pete Skorich preview the night's Pistons opponent. It was canceled after the 2008–09 season.

Motor City Memories – Discussion of memorable Detroit Pistons teams of the past, hosted by George Blaha. It was replaced by Pistons In Focus for the 2009–10 season.

In My Own Words: Detroit – A 30-minute interview featuring a sports figure in Detroit. This show is similar to Chris Myers Interview. The show debuted September 9, 2007. John Keating was the host. The program was canceled in 2008.

Specials

FSN Basement: All Star Edition 2005 – Featuring interviews with George Kell and Al Kaline, each recalling their memories of playing for the Tigers and working together in the television booth. It was re-aired several times in late March 2009 in memory of former long-time Tigers play-by-play announcer George Kell, who died on March 24, 2009 at age 86.

Ernie Harwell: We'll Remember – A tribute special shown after the death of legendary Tigers broadcaster Ernie Harwell on May 5, 2010.

Other services

Fox Sports Detroit HD

Fox Sports Detroit HD is a 720phigh definition simulcast feed of Fox Sports Detroit. It telecasts all Detroit Pistons, Detroit Red Wings and Detroit Tigers games in HD, their respective pre-game and post-game shows and team magazine shows, as well as all college and high school games and programs. Wingspan became the first locally produced pre-recorded program to be broadcast in HD when it began in 2009.[2] In 2010, Central Collegiate Hockey Association (CCHA) and MHSAA games began airing in HD. Nationally televised FSN games and other programs are also broadcast in HD. Like the standard-definition feed, it is available nationwide via DirecTV and Dish Network, and on most cable providers in Michigan and some in Ohio, Indiana and Wisconsin.

Fox Sports Detroit Plus

Fox Sports Detroit Plus is a game-time only alternate feed of Fox Sports Detroit.[11] It was launched in 2007 to solve scheduling conflicts, such as those of the Detroit Tigers, Pistons and Red Wings, as well as CCHA games, MHSAA finals for football and basketball, and The Mid-American Conference Basketball Tournament (via Fox Sports Ohio). It is frequently used for live college football, college basketball, college baseball and tennis telecasts and other events distributed nationally by FSN, to avoid conflicts with local coverage.

Fox Sports Detroit Plus has been used for special alternate feeds of local games, such as the annual "¡Fiesta Tigres!" game which celebrates Latin American players, in which alternate announcers conducted Spanish language play-by-play; a "Position-by-position" Tigers game, with the camera isolating on a different defensive player every inning featuring John Keating on play-by-play; as well as a "Social networking" Tigers telecast in which the channel's staff answered viewer questions from Facebook, Twitter, and their own website.

Fox Sports Detroit Plus also has an HD feed which is available on DirecTV, Dish Network, AT&T U-verse, Comcast, WOW! and some smaller regional cable systems.[11]

Fox Sports Detroit On Demand

Fox Sports Detroit On Demand is the video on demand service of Fox Sports Detroit, which is currently available on Comcast. Launched in October 2008, its offerings include the channel's magazine and coach's shows, which are presented commercial-free. On August 7, 2009, Fox Sports Detroit On Demand began carrying full-length presentations of the channel's Tigers game broadcasts.[12]